Across the country today, police are investigating an alleged “Cash-for-pass” scam, in which driving test examiners are offering candidates a pass in exchange for money.

Officers swooped upon a North London driving test centre and took a man into custody under suspicion of the offence at 8am this morning, as well as seizing boxes of evidence. It is alleged the examiner was bribed with rewards of up to £3,000 per test that he agreed to pass in advance. Over 100 people have been identified by investigators to have fraudulently obtained their licences from the examiner by way of offering a cash reward. Each of these licences has been revoked.

Two driving instructors have been arrested as part of the investigation, as well as four test candidates, in areas across the country including North London, and Walsall, West Midlands.

Andrew Rice, the head of Fraud and Integrity at the Driving Standards Agency has said: “We believe the candidates have approached their driving instructor, they’ve had a conversation saying for ‘x’ amounts of money we can guarantee you a pass… The candidate then agrees to that. The driving instructor then speaks to our member of staff and tells them which candidate to pass.”

Almost 900 cases of alleged identity fraud are also being scrutinised as part of the ongoing investigation, under the suspicion that a high level of candidates are paying other, more experienced drivers to take the driving test in their place, due to the number of cases of identity fraud increasing in recent years.

Pc Matthew Stott was involved in a police chase but this time, it was him the police were after.

The police officers that attempted to pull him over had spotted a defective rear light however, Pc Stott had been drinking and took off. He claims that he failed to stop because he thought it was “former colleagues playing a prank.”

After he was stopped, and breathalysed it became apparent he was over the legal alcohol limit and as a result has been banned from driving for a year and fined more than £1000.

Heather Oliver, mitigating, said that the pursuit only lasted five minutes. She also said: “He will be punished over and above what many defendants would face in a similar situation…his 24-year career is now effectively over.”

The Judge however, made a fair point, suggesting that Pc Stott must witness drink driving on a regular basis and the consequences this holds. He said: “It was a very unwise decision to drive that night and you exacerbated that by not stopping for the police.”

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

The DVLA has issued a harsh warning to all drivers in the UK to ensure that their driving licences are kept up to date and renewed as and when is needed.

The standard-issue photo-card licence, which has been common practice for over 15 years now, is currently in possession by over 30 million drivers across the UK. However a startling 2 million of these have failed to renew their photo at the same time as renewing their licence, if even renewing their licence at all!

Failing to maintain the information on your licence can prove costly; if you do not notify the DVLA of a change of address, for example, you are liable for fines of up to £1000. The same goes for not updating the image of yourself on your licence. Most licences are valid for 10 years, and as Victoria Ford from the DVLA states:

“Appearances can change and it is important that photo-card licences are updated every 10 years to ensure the police and other enforcement agencies have the best possible photograph to help them correctly identify whether a driving licence is being used fraudulently… This helps prevent driving licence impersonation – stopping disqualified and perhaps dangerous drivers taking to our roads.”

LV Car Insurance has produced research that shows that 1 in 10 drivers admit to going longer than the required decade to renew their licence- despite numerous official reminders- and almost twice this amount are unaware that their licence even expires at all; leaving them vulnerable to hefty fines imposed by the DVLA- despite their licence expiry date being clearly printed on the front of their pink driving licence!

Paul Watters from the AA advises everyone to check their details and ensure everything is up to date; if one detail is incorrect in registering your vehicle, for example your address not being updated since moving house, or having a fully insured car, however one that is not on the Motor Insurance Database, you could become subject to fines of anywhere from £100 to £1,000.

Most drivers aren’t aware that it is free to renew your licence in the case of a change of address, and only £20 to renew a licence that has expired. Save yourself some money; check all of your details!

Safe driving from Britannia!

Police officers in Mildura, Victoria have raised concerns about the accuracy of Apple Maps after the force have had to rescue stranded drivers who have followed the incorrect directions the software produced.

The mapping system shows Mildura in the middle of the Murray Sunset National Park, which is in fact 45 miles away from that location.

Sharon Darcy, acting senior sergeant said: “Police are extremely concerned as there is no water supply within the park and the temperatures can reach as high as 46c, making this a potentially life-threatening issue.”

When the software was first released back in September, despite the criticisms, Apple defended the software. As time has gone on, they have since admitted the faults and are looking to improve the software.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Nissan are experimenting with an adapted Nissan Leaf to see whether the car can park itself and even find the parking space to begin with.

The car has sensors which detect reflective white lines on the floor. It then uses cameras to guide the car into the space. At present the car only works with reflective white paint, so could not be used out on the main roads but could certainly take the stress out of car-park chaos.

Using your Smartphone, you can even order the car to find a parking space and when you are ready order the car to return to you.

The car has built in security cameras to deter any jealous thieves

Nissan don’t know if and when it could bring the vehicle out to the mainstream market, but is enjoying working on this novel idea.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

A DRIVING instructor has become the first in the UK to teach pupils using an all-electric car. Paul Tomlin, has bought a Nissan LEAF from the Holdcroft dealership and says that both he and his pupils are delighted with it.

Paul, of Waterdale Grove, Longton, says that he bought the car to save money and do his bit to help the environment but adds that it also makes his pupils better and safer drivers.

He says: “I had been looking at electric cars for some time and when I tested one it just felt right. There was a bit of a problem fitting dual controls but that was soon sorted.

“Being a driving instructor it is a bit difficult to be green because I do about 25,000 miles a year but this is a zero emission car and I save around £2,800 annually on running costs too. I recharge it during my lunch break and it works well.”

And Paul says that the LEAF is good for students too. It is exceptionally easy to drive because it has no gears, instant throttle response and there is virtually no noise and it also has a display showing the driver how much energy they are using or putting back into the battery.

Paul says: “The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) is very keen these days to promote ‘eco-safe’ driving which is based on driving efficiently by proper observation and anticipation and not wasting energy. The LEAF is the ideal car for this because you can see instantly how much power you are using. Because there are no gears and because it is so easy to control my pupils can devote more attention to the road and traffic.”

One pupil has already passed her test in the LEAF after failing twice before in other cars.

Paul adds: “Since I took delivery of the Nissan LEAF there has been lots of interest from my fellow instructors and it’s easy to see why. The pupils love the car and the immediate success they have had underlines what an easy car the LEAF is to drive. For me personally I’m happy to now avoid the petrol stations and I feel happier for the environment by driving a zero emissions vehicle.”

David Dillon, dealer principal at Holdcroft Nissan, adds: “We’re happy to see the LEAF become the first electric driving instructor vehicle and thrilled for the pupils successfully passing in the car. With the pass success Paul has already enjoyed with a 100 per cent electric car, many young learners future first driving experience could well be in a LEAF.”

ASK does also teach learners in a manual gearbox car.

Cambridge taxi drivers have received more than 600 complaints, half of which relate to bad driving.

Members of the public have complained about taxi drivers who fail to give way or have caused a collision due to poor driving.

Councillor Colin Rosenstiel, who is in charge of the city’s licensing committee, wants to make changes and stop those creating a bad name for taxi drivers.

However, other complaints relate to overcharging and route disputes, rudeness, criminal damage and driver conduct. Cllr Rosenstiel said: “My concern is that the council’s determination to raise standards has not succeeded, I want to put in a renewed effort to do so.”

Despite the long list of complaints, only 18 drivers have been disciplined since 2008, according to council statistics. It is thought that courts are overturning decisions to suspend licences factoring in that taxi drivers are “only human” and suspending their licence could cause potential hardship.

Chairman or Cambridge City Licensed Taxis, has suggested that drivers who fall below the required standards be sent on a driver awareness course.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

You’ll probably hear your driving instructor bang on a lot about checking your blind spot, and he does so for good reason.

Whilst your mirrors are very useful and you should use them, you shouldn’t just rely on them. You need to look at your blind spot too.

We see people fail to check their blind spot a lot when they are changing lanes. When you come to changing lanes, you would have read in your Highway Code about mirror-signal-manoeuvre, which is of course important. But so is checking your blind spot. Make a habit of checking it. This also includes when you are reversing around the corner, bay parking and many other times when you’re on the road.

Be safe. Check your blind spot!

The DSA (Driving Standards Agency) have began their trial of offering driving tests from public  locations such as retail premises and public buildings.

From March drivers can take their practical driving test from Nottingham Trent University. Drivers will be able to select from two days a week and can set of from either of the Universities campuses.

The trial which was given the go ahead by Road minister Stephen Hammond will last between three to six months and reviewed after this period.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Folkestone Academy in Kent has been in touch with Kent Police after a local resident Mr Mallett filmed drivers mounting the pavements and driving along the pathway.

Mr Mallett said: “I just saw one car after another just drive past on the path outside my house, opposite the school. It’s absolute chaos. It’s just an accident waiting to happen.”

A spokesman for Kent Police said they will investigate the matter and try contacting the drivers caught on camera whilst continue to monitor the situation.

Associate head teacher at the school, Mr Smith said: It’s frequently busy at the front of the school but for cars to take it upon themselves to mount the pavement to avoid the traffic is absolutely outrageous.”

The school have now advised parents and children to meet at a different location which is less congested.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below: